The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey (2012)
Average Rating: 6.5/10
Reviews Counted: 267
Fresh: 173 | Rotten: 94
Peter Jackson's return to Middle-earth is an earnest, visually resplendent trip, but the film's deliberate pace robs the material of some of its majesty.
Average Rating: 6.1/10
Critic Reviews: 46
Fresh: 21 | Rotten: 25
Peter Jackson's return to Middle-earth is an earnest, visually resplendent trip, but the film's deliberate pace robs the material of some of its majesty.
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Average Rating: 4.1/5
User Ratings: 406,001
Movie Info
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey follows title character Bilbo Baggins, who is swept into an epic quest to reclaim the lost Dwarf Kingdom of Erebor, which was long ago conquered by the dragon Smaug. Approached out of the blue by the wizard Gandalf the Grey, Bilbo finds himself joining a company of thirteen dwarves led by the legendary warrior Thorin Oakenshield. Although their goal lies to the East and the wastelands of the Lonely Mountain, first they must escape the goblin tunnels, where Bilbo
Cast
-
Ian McKellen
Gandalf -
Martin Freeman
Bilbo, Bilbo Baggins -
Richard Armitage
Thorin, Thorin Oaken... -
Ken Stott
Balin -
Graham McTavish
Dwalin -
William Kircher
Bifur, Tom Troll -
James Nesbitt
Bofur -
Stephen Hunter
Bombur -
Dean O'Gorman
Fili -
Aidan Turner
Kili -
John Callen
Oin -
Peter Hambleton
Gloin, William Troll -
Jed Brophy
Nori -
Mark Hadlow
Bert Troll, Dori -
Adam Brown
Ori -
Ian Holm
Bilbo Baggins (old),... -
Elijah Wood
Frodo, Frodo Baggins -
Hugo Weaving
Elrond -
Cate Blanchett
Galadriel -
Christopher Lee
Saruman -
Andy Serkis
Gollum -
Sylvester McCoy
Radagast -
Barry Humphries
Goblin King, Great G... -
Jeffrey Thomas
Thror -
Mike Mizrahi
Thrain -
Lee Pace
Thranduil -
Manu Bennett
Azog -
Conan Stevens
Bolg -
John Rawls
Yazneg -
Stephen Ure
Fimbul, Grinnah -
Timothy Bartlett
Master Worrywart -
Bret McKenzie
Lindir -
Kiran Shah
Goblin Scribe -
Benedict Cumberbatch
Necromancer, Smaug -
Glenn Boswell
Dwarf Miner -
Thomas Robins
Young Thrain -
Rob Kazinsky
Fili -
Stephen Fry
Master of Laketown -
Evangeline Lilly
Tauriel -
Orlando Bloom
Legolas -
Luke Evans
Bard the Bowman
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All Critics (267) | Top Critics (46) | Fresh (173) | Rotten (94) | DVD (3)
It frequently seems as though Jackson was less interested in making The Hobbit than in remaking his own fabulously successful Lord of the Rings series.
Top CriticMy first thought in watching The Hobbit was: Do we really need this movie? It was my last thought, too.
To its own narrative detriment, "The Hobbit" works hard to lay the framework for what will follow. Certainly that's one way to set out on a trilogy, but it's surely not the best.
There's no denying the majesty in Peter Jackson's visuals but he's taken a relatively slim children's book and stretched it beyond the limits.
The repeated iterations of fight, flight and respite here get wearing. Especially perhaps because, with Jackson's fetish for detail, they take more time to watch on screen than to read about.
"The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey" has finally arrived, not on wings of gossamer fancy but with a hairy-footed thud.
It's like we returned to Disneyland to find it looking as magical as ever, but with most of the rides closed.
There are worse ways to kill time, sure; it's just that there is, alas, so much time to kill.
"Unexpected Journey" runs nearly three hours. That gives Jackson plenty of time to revive its magic [which he does] by triggering our good will toward the "Rings" trilogy. He evokes the trilogy's tone and its rhythms.
As great as Serkis is, he can't begin to make 'The Hobbit' look anything but short.
The odd thing about the saying "too much of a good thing" is that it acknowledges the fact that, something, in general, is composed of an overabundance of excellence.
The Hobbit may not be as memorable as the Lord of the Rings trilogy, but it's a mostly faithful adaptation that sticks to the same tones and themes of the source material.
It's a journey that any fan of Peter Jackson's "The Lord of the Rings" Trilogy should enjoy.
Peter Jackson's return to Middle Earth feels familiar and unfulfilling.
If Jackson had focused simply on Bilbo's party and their attempts to get a proper homeland for the dwarves, 'The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey' would have been a leaner, more engaging tale.
Fans of J.R.R. Tolkien may like sitting through a 169 minute film, that easily could have been trimmed by at least 50 minutes. But, I was constantly aware of the long running time.
As it stands, The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey is a thoroughly engaging, often rip-roaring, old school yarn. It's got scope, excitement, and above all, emotional heft.
Whenever this movie suffers from lengthy prequel-itis and a weighty sense of expectations, it falls short. Still, for much of its 165 minutes, this epic has enough small moments and deft touches that it tugs you along with the power of a good story.
An Unexpected Journey offers an unparalleled visual spectacle
a drag-down, mildly diverting entertainment
When the dwarves turn up mob-handed, kicking off a night of boisterous revelry, the laboured jests and jollity seem to go on forever. And the combination of dwarves, forced humour and familiar faces off the telly turn the occasion into bad panto.
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey had me with the dulcet melancholy of displaced Dwarves, yearning to be home.
Slower out of the gates than a three-legged donkey... but it gets better, and fans won't mind this slowburn beginning because, hey, it's Middle Earth.
It's the behaviour of the supposedly affable dwarves that makes this particular 'adventure' such a punishing experience.
...a jaw-dropping visual carnival courtesy of Peter Jackson and company!
Very, very (very) slow in the early going, but Peter Jackson does get there (eventually).
Audience Reviews for The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
Super Reviewer
Super Reviewer
Movies Like The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
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- Gandalf: These are gundabad wargs. They will outrun you!
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- Kili: At your service!
- Fili: At your service!
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- Saruman: You've been busy my friend.
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- Gollum: Baggins what is a baggins?
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- Radagast: These are Rhosgobel Rabbits! I'd like to see them try.
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- Gollum: The Bagginses like the fishies.
Discussion Forum
| Topic | Last Post | Replies |
|---|---|---|
| I HATE CRITCS | 55 days ago | 217 |
| THE HOBBIT? HAHAHA | 2 days ago | 208 |
| Fans (not fanboys) of this movie, Please explain what you liked. | 12 days ago | 187 |
| People, get over it. This is just a mediocre movie | 44 days ago | 166 |
| The Hobbit vs The Phantom Menace? | 5 days ago | 165 |
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Latest News on The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey
August 14, 2013:
MGM Revenues RiseJames Bond and the Hobbits pad the studio's once-barren bottom line.
July 31, 2013:
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey Extended Edition Arriving in OctoberFeaturing 13 minutes of extra footage -- and nine hours of bonus content.
June 25, 2013:
The Hobbit: An Unexpected Journey - Extended Edition Details EmergePeter Jackson says he's "putting things in the extended cut that are going to play straight into the...
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Foreign Titles
- Der Hobbit: Eine unerwartete Reise (DE)
- Le Hobbit : un voyage inattendu (FR)
Based on J.R.R. Tolkien's 1937 novel The Hobbit this is the first entry in a new trilogy focusing on events prior to the LOTR trilogy.
60 years before the events of Fellowship, we follow a younger Bilbo Baggins as he gets thrust into a quest to help the wizard Gandalf and a company of 12 dwarves lead by the mighty Thorin Oakenshield to reclaim the dwarf kingdom of Erebor that was taken over long ago by the dragon Smaug.
Given how the novel is 310 pages or so, it's pretty obvious that there's a lot of padding going on, especially since this one book is being adapted into a trilogy, and this, it's first part, is 170 minutes long. No, it's not really necessary to do this, and yeah, making it two parts would be better, as it's unlikely they'd go for just a single super long film, but at the same time, even though a relatively simple and compact story is blown out into epic proportions, it also means we get a fair amount of supplemental material from the Tolkien canon thrown in as well, which, for die hard fans, might be considered a good thing.
Personally, I'm on the fence about it. Yeah, some of the extra stuff is cool, but I really don't think it's necessary to make things so bloated and lengthy. Of course money is the main factor for all of this, but, despite my disagreements with some of this, I will admit that I'm happy to have more of Middle Earth get the big screen treatment.
And let's be honest: at this stage of his career, serving up epic spectacle is what Peter Jackson really excels at.
The film looks great, and, even though the decision to make this trilogy in 3D and shot in a high frame rate isn't the most necessary thing either, I was glued to the screen for the whole running time.
Martin Freeman is great as young Bilbo Baggins, and we get welcome returns from Ian McKellan as Gandalf and Andy Serkis as Gollum in what is easily the film's best scene. Other cast members from the Rings trilogy appear as well, and it's nice to see them, but it also felt a tad forced. Among the new cast, none of them are really remarkable except for Richard Armitage as Thorin. All the rest of the dwarves just feel interchangeable and unremarkable.
The action scenes are well done, the effects, though CGI heavy, are also quite strong, and the music too, is quite stunning.
Obviously since this is the first in a new trilogy it's kinda anti-climactic, but since I try to be optimistic more than pessimistic, I'll be nice and call it a nice tease for things to come.